The Ottawa free trader., 1887-03-26

"
seouently tn consumer of iron and steel
mus, pay from 60 u 2i4 per cent duty II
nm compelled To pay $50 n ton for what
| could buy for $50, or even for $40, with
ont u, vernment Interference, | deny the
iu,,ic. of the dealing, especially when the
government can say nothing better to JUS
rify It's cause than that somebody else is
getting rich, and am getting rails or steel
cheaper than usel % buy them. am
still denied my right to have the benefit of
tue cheaper product still confronted with
the statement that artificial dearnesS Is bet
ter than natural cheapness.
This same will apply to the increased
cheapness If clothing The cheapness OF
W olen goods is largely due TO the develop.
mpnt of Australian wOol.growlng. The
cotton crop of the world is almost twice
what il was before our war English nan.
ufaCfures under free trade have grown more
rapidly than American manufactures under
protection The average American laborer
is better off than the average European be-
cause of SO many things that they can not
all be enumerated; IN Ist of all, because OF
our freedom of change, and our cheap
lands But if any candid man will com.
pare our growth and development from
1916 10 1860 under our comparatively low
tariff, he will see tina, the tariff Is only one
out of many things to be considered. In
that time manufactures developed faster
than ever before or since. Immigration
WAS proportionately greater than it has ever
been Our revenue was ample for al our
wants, and the nation was out Of debt
There was less distress among the working
classes. There were paratively no
labor troubles; no strikes or lock outs; no
anarchists and socialists; no armies of
tramps. If wages were less, their pur.
chasing power was greater. The truth is
that modern life is too complex to admit OF
our laying any great movement, affecting
the business of the world TO any single and
comparatively local cause.
Another example of reasoning from that
which is seen and of diSregarding that
which is not seen Is TO be found in Mr.
James reasoning from the prosperity of
Joliet as deduced from the iron Industry
protected by tariff To make the case still
simpler, suppose that there was but one
iron mill in all the United States, and that
we're located at Joliet, and that to protect
this one town all the rest of the sixty mil
lions of people were taxed an average of
As per cent on all their iron. Would not
every thoughtful man say, as he looked
upon this, "Where is the justice of taxing
the rest of US that Joliet real estate men
may sell their lots at higher prices, or that
Joliet workmen may get better wages out
of the profits of our business" 1t would
then be seen how the money of every man
who had TO use SO much as a pound of
nails, or single steel tool, or rod Of wire
fence, was going to build up one great city.
The people would not stand it, especially
those who were far away. They would
abolish protection, and say: "Why should
we build up your city at our expense :?
What justice is this" Then, perhaps,
only three or four congressman would be
controlled by the iron Interest. Now, by
scattering this interest, more congressman
are influenced and the evils of this eyces
Io:. lace nj ni,t cod
less. The tariff on iron Is a marvel of
minute and petty detail, eXhorbitant, far
reaching, affecting every business interest
1t is by fur the worst of all the list of our
protective duties, because it affects more
persons and interests than any other
The free trader believes in such manu-
features as can live without artificial help
Here is the tile industry which has been
developed within few years How much
capital and how many men are employed
here in this state in this single line of new
industries. Moline has grown to be large
and prosperous manufacturing town on an
industry which the tariff hampers. With
cheap A iron, every manufacturer VINO
works iron could produce more at the same
price, or could lower prices to the con
sumer With lower prices comes increased
consumption everywhere. High prices of
ten defeat themselves. The high price of
building lots cripples many a town. The
wise dealer prefers to sell a great deal at
25 per cent. profit rather than little at so
per cent The men who used to lie around
our towns expecting to eain big wages for
few days in harvest time and to lie Idle
the rest of the year were like certain class
of manufacturers who would rather sell on
close monopoly at high price than to man
ufacture largely at lower prices
If any part of our country has had
chance to test tariff, It is New England.
What are the results? Vermont is falling
of In population. New Hampshire barely
holds her own, Maine is passed by other
states, and has lost congressman since the
war The three smaller states, where an
immense capital had ceHtered before the